LABOR politicians sitting around out of the public gaze plotting who might get pre-selection for which seat in certain circumstances is nothing new in itself but the Machiavellian scheming we've heard about this week will do nothing to lessen the cynicism in the minds of voters about how the party operates.

Labor's problem is its obsession with centralised power and what seems like a suspicion or fear of everyday rank and file party members. ALP powerbrokers can wield power disproportionate to their own individual numbers because of the way the Labor Party divides decision-making between local branches and a central panel with membership carved-up on the basis of factional strength and union allegiance. This is why a candidate like former state MP Paul Hoolihan in Rockhampton can win the local plebiscite easily but the movers and shakers in Brisbane - beholden not to any central Queensland community but to the faceless men and women of the factions - wanted the Left's Peter Freeleagus, a former Belyando Shire mayor.

This was made even more disturbing because of an alleged deal for the powerful Australian Workers Union faction to be given the gift of pre-selection for the state seats of Nudgee and Sandgate, normally safe Labor electorates lost to the LNP in last year's conservative landslide. This is very cold comfort for the hard working branch members who do leaflets drops and election-day duty on polling booths.

Labor officials protest they are reforming their party procedures but it is at a snail's pace. The issue was not even debated in any meaningful sense at the party's last national conference - after delegates used all their passion arguing about marriage equality - and in some states almost nothing has happened since. Queensland, with some fresh minds jolted by the state election thrashing, was ahead of the game in this process and has made relatively significant strides. But the very fact local opinion can be overruled with the bang of a gavel in Peel St, South Brisbane, shows there is much more to be done.

The Labor Party has had as one of its key tenets the ideal of one vote, one value as part of its governance and electoral democracy policy. However, when it comes to choosing candidates for the electorates its demands are decided on this principle there is no such democratic right. The LNP selects its candidates for lower house seats at an electorate level with a measure of central vetting. As we've seen in recent weeks as the background of suspended LNP Redcliffe MP Scott Driscoll has been exposed, this vetting is not always faultless. It is preferable, though, to leave these decisions to people who know the local community and appreciate who would make a good representative. It may mean ceding some power on the part of the factions but it may pay a big respect and trust dividend from wary voters. But, even as polling shows Labor freewheeling towards an electoral annihilation in September, there is no meaningful sign from within its ranks that it will cede that factional stranglehold.

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LIFE'S GOOD: Coen Ashton at his home in Maryborough. Picture: Megan SladeSource: The Courier-Mail

Coen an inspiration

COEN Ashton has learnt to laugh again - another achievement for a Queensland teenager who is constantly inspiring others. It's hard to believe that Coen has not laughed properly for so long given the contagious smile with which he greets many moments of his life. Even before and after his lung transplant last year, Coen has faced the public with an irresistible attitude. That is common among the state's cystic fibrosis community, which punches well above its weight after losing key state government funding.

We wish Coen all the best with his goal to keep laughing loudly and long as he moves into adulthood. His family have provided the best environment which has enabled Coen to achieve so much in his 15 years despite his daily challenges.

Responsibility for election comment is taken by Michael Crutcher, corner of Mayne Rd & Campbell St, Bowen Hills, Qld, 4006. Printed and published by NEWSQUEENSLAND. (ACN 009 661 778). A full list of our editors and journalists, with contact details, is available at

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